When Audacy was searching for a new media professional to lead WFAN and Infinity Sports Network after Spike Eskin decided to return to Philadelphia and host afternoon drive on SportsRadio 94WIP, the station conducted a series of interviews with various candidates. Ryan Hurley ultimately ended up landing the job as brand manager of both entities; however, there were conversations held with Jon “Stugotz” Weiner for the position. In fact, Weiner has expressed that he was offered the role but ended up turning it down, a decision he elaborated on after the fact over the phone on the Boomer & Gio morning show. Weiner is filling in for Boomer Esiason on the program this week and was asked about his pursuit of the job at WFAN earlier in the year.
Co-host Gregg Giannotti expressed that when Eskin had initially been hired in 2021, people at the station thought he would work there for 10 or 15 years. With Eskin’s tenure lasting less than three years, it came as a surprise that the job became open. Giannotti then affirmed that Weiner found his way into the conversation in a manner at which he is skilled and that the process dragged on for a while. Although Weiner loves producing and discussing what he has learned over his decades in the business, the decision not to take the job was based on several factors.
“We have a 20th year anniversary coming up in September,” Weiner said of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz. “[Chris] Oliviero was great – we had great conversations [and I] got to know him very, very well – and it really came down to money. It’s a different time. This job probably paid 10 times more 10 years ago than what it pays today because radio, as you know, is dying a very slow death. But not here – not here.”
Another issue pertaining to his candidacy, Giannotti said, was the fact that Weiner had a desire to host on the station as well. As a result, he may have exercised his authority in the role to fire a host in order to gain a spot in the daypart that he wanted. Weiner divulged that it likely would have been Evan Roberts in afternoon drive that would have been let go, but he also offered to be the third person on their program. Giannotti informed him that Shaun Morash currently has that role in the show, but he stands in the control room rather than being situated in the studio.
Shortly after this conversation took place, The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz took the air from Miami, Fla. and opened with host Dan Le Batard averring that he was pretty sure the program would make it to its 20th anniversary in September. Yet he was not making any promises because of Weiner and his intrigue with WFAN.
“Stugotz is being paid this week to be here, but he’s too busy – he’s advertising himself,” Le Batard said. “He’s gone full prostitute. He’s going, ‘I’m in a contract year. I’m available to anyone who will take me. Who wants to pay me?,’ not noticing it’s a terrible, shrinking media market – not noticing that there are no jobs.”
Show contributor Billy Gil, who co-hosts the God Bless Football podcast with Weiner, surmised that he could indeed be realizing the job market, thus trying to get ahead of it. Le Batard opined that there are not any jobs in New York for him, articulating that he had already tried such a thing. After playing an audio montage of Weiner laughing on WFAN, the show played a clip of him explaining his current contract situation with Meadowlark Media and his future aspirations in the sports media business.
“I’m in a contract year, and I have one contract left in which I want to be on air, and so I am telling the people here that run WFAN, ‘This will be your last opportunity to get me,’ okay?,” Weiner said. “That contract’s up in about 7-8 months – could be longer, I have no idea. I am telling you, I’m doing one more go here. I got like three more years left on air, and then I’m going to go somewhere and I’m going to disappear.”
